Author Archives: Stephen

Plantation Shutters

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The biggest chore in making your own shutters is maching the slats. I made mine from basswood, which is stable and easy to work. However the sheer number required is daunting. My project required 18 per door x 6 doors.


I sized the basswood blanks so I would end up with 2 slats per blank with enough extra to allow for planer snipe on each end. I made a special jig which tipped up each side of the blank so I would create the desired profile.

Each slat was sanded after planing and before cutting to length. Vacuum was connected to orbital sander to reduce dust.

Special jigs were used to drive a crown staple into the top of each shutter and then through that staple into the shutter bar control.

Here are the slats attached to the control bar after driving the crown staples. The end of each slat has a hole drilled in the center to accept a plastic pivot pin which resides in the shutter frame stile.

Here are the finished shutters. The shutter frames were made from popular, which takes paint well. The plans were obtained from the New Yankee Workshop. Warning: there is a lot of figuring to do, since the shutter size must be matched to the window. Now I know why wooden shutters cost so much - it is quite an undertaking.

Scraper Shaves

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ShopNotes Issue 112 had an article on making Scraper Shaves. This is basically a spokeshave style body in which custom scrapers made from a card file are mounted. I didn't own a spokeshave and had wanted to try them out so this seemed like a good opportunity. Here you can see the finished product making paper thin shavings on a piece of red oak. I used persimmon (only tree found in America in the ebony family) for the body and cocobollo for the toe plate. I used brass hardware to hold the blade in place.

ShopNotes Issue 112 had an article on making Scraper Shaves. This is basically a spokeshave style body in which custom scrapers made from a card file are mounted. I didn’t own a spokeshave and had wanted to try them out so this seemed like a good opportunity.
Here you can see the finished product making paper thin shavings on a piece of red oak. I used persimmon (only tree found in America in the ebony family) for the body and cocobollo for the toe plate. Hard maple would be a good choice for the body. I used brass hardware to hold the blade in place.

Here is an exploded view of the parts. The blades are made from a 2 inch wide card scraper. A line is scored across the card and when it is bent sharply in a vise it will snap off. See the article for the details.

Here is an exploded view of the parts. The blades are made from a 2 inch wide card scraper. A line is scored across the card and when it is bent sharply in a vise it will snap off. See the article for the details.

Here are the four I made. Two have flat blades - I use these the most. One has a 5/8 inch radius profile and the other a 1-1/2 inch radius profile. They also showed a V-notch profile, but I figured I could just tip my block plane at a 45 degree angle and get the same effect.

Here are the four I made. Two have flat blades – I use these the most. One has a 5/8 inch radius profile and the other a 1-1/2 inch radius profile. They also showed a V-notch profile, but I figured I could just tip my block plane at a 45 degree angle and get the same effect.

I sharpen the flat blades on my WorkSharp at 45 degrees. You could also burnish a hook as is done on a traditional card scraper. The radius cutters were made by holding the blade at an angle against a spindle sander. I use these quite a lot. There an epoxy fill over knots was quickly worked down flush. The handles give excellent control over the tool, and is much less likely to cause gouges in a laminated top when flushing out applied hardwood trim on end grain.

I sharpen the flat blades on my WorkSharp at 45 degrees. You could also burnish a hook as is done on a traditional card scraper. The radius cutters were made by holding the blade at an angle against a spindle sander.
I use these quite a bit. Here an epoxy fill over knots was quickly worked down flush. The handles give excellent control over the tool, and it is much less likely to cause gouges in a laminated top when flushing out applied hardwood trim on end grain than if a block plane or sander is used.